It was about 5 am when I gave up trying to sleep through a queasy stomach. I wondered about that as I headed for the shower because stomachaches are unusual for me, and nausea even more so.

As a health care journalist, I knew to pay attention to unusual symptoms. But other things were on my mind, namely, the guests coming for lunch and a complicated soup recipe I wanted to test out on them. The dawn promised spectacular autumn weather for an after-lunch hike, and I wasn’t going to let a stomachache mess with my plans.